Brothers' War Prerelease Information

Brothers' War Prerelease Information

This November, it’s time to reinvent the past to retake the future. And we’re headed back to the first and largest conflict in Magic’s history – the Brothers’ War. Choose a side and assemble your army of artifice in a conflict that will reshape the world of Dominaria.

Brothers' War Prerelease Overview

The theme of returning to where it all began continues in the Brothers' War! It's Urza vs Mishra in a conflict that will reshape continents and change the future of Magic. Not only that, but the 30th Anniversary celebration continues with more chances to collect special anniversary promos that link the very beginning of Magic with the present day. 

But before we get into all of that - some helpful preregistration links and rundowns of the prerelease events we'll be hosting. 

Sealed Prerelease Events

Quick Note: During these prerelease events, you will be asked to pick a brother to support (Urza or Mishra). Don't worry if the brother you want isn't available - the choice is purely an aesthetic one and has no bearing on the cards inside the pack. We just thought it'd be a fun choice for you.

Bonus Draft Prerelease Event!

  • Flight 7 - November 15, 6 PM! (This link will go live on Monday, November 14 at 11 AM)

Wait...a draft prerelease? What? Can we do that?

Short answer - for Brothers' War, yes! Want the longer answer? Read on to find out!

Brothers' War Preorders and Buy-A-Box Promo Information

During the prerelease for Brothers' War, not only will we be offering Set, Draft, and Collector Boxes, but we'll be offering everything, all during prerelease weekend. You'll be able to walk in and buy individual booster packs, commander decks, bundles, and of course, prerelease kits and boxes.

Because of this change, we're also able to host booster draft style prerelease events for the first time ever, and we are choosing to use that newfound power to replace our regular Tuesday Night flashback draft with this bonus prerelease draft flight. 

Buying boxes gets you something else too - an extended border buy-a-box promo card! You'll receive one buy-a-box promo for every purchase of the following items:

You'll get 1 promo per qualifying item(s) purchased. So if you preorder 6 prerelease kits and a set booster display, you'll get 2 of these lovely promo cards.

30th Anniversary Bonus Promos!

Continuing what we started with Dominaria United, we'll be offering up to four promo cards tied to Magic's 30th anniversary. These promos will be stamped with the year each card came out, and there will be 30 promos in total, one per year. Wanna get one? It's easy! 

We'll be awarding one promo for every 2 Prerelease events you sign up for, and one promo for every player who goes undefeated at the prerelease.

Additional promos can also be awarded by event staff for excellent behavior such as assisting other players with deck building, helping event staff, and good sporting behavior and more. Please note that we did not receive equal amounts of all the promos for this set. Some cards will be harder to find than others!

Preparing for a Prerelease at Phoenix

Once you've preregistered for your event(s) of choice, there's a small checklist of things to do before prerelease weekend rolls along. If you're planning to play at one of the in-person events, here's what you'll need to be aware of:

  • Review our current guidelines regarding in-store play.
  • Wear a comfortable and well-fitted mask to the event, and be prepared to keep it on while indoors. (Please note: non-alcoholic drinks are permitted inside, but food is not, so please be prepared to eat outside if you need a snack)
  • Optional, but highly recommended: Download the Magic Companion app to your phone or tablet.
  • Optional, but highly recommended: Make sure you have a login setup with the MTG Companion App (if you play Arena, these login credentials are the same for both game and app).

A note on our mask policy: After careful consideration and consultation with our team, we have decided to still require in-store masking. Our in-store play guidelines have been updated accordingly.

What to do during Prerelease Weekend

If you're playing in one of our in-person events, just make sure you arrive at the store before the event's start time. We recommend aiming for about 30-45 minutes prior to the event to make sure you can get checked in, find a seat, and get comfortable in the space. You can do some trading, or pick up some sleeves or what have you, and it's way easier if you do that ahead of start time rather than during deck construction.

The Prerelease "How to"

All of our regular Brothers' War prerelease events will be a sealed (or limited) format events. That means you'll be given 6 draft boosters of Brothers' War and a foil prerelease promo inside of your prerelease kit. We'll give you about 45 minutes to open those packs, sort them, and build deck out of the contents inside. Here are all the deck building requirements: 

  • Minimum Deck Size is 40 cards
  • You may use whatever is in one single prerelease kit (plus the promo) to build your deck.
  • Aside from basic land, you may only use whatever is in your prerelease kit to build with. (No trading with other players or combining multiple pools, please).
  • There's no cap on the number of cards of the same name you can have in the deck (ex: if you open 5 of the same card, you can use all 5 if you want).
  • You may adjust your deck between games or matches. If you're just not doing well with what you built, maybe try a different combination of colors!

Once you've got your deck built, set the rest of your card pool aside until the end of the event. Don't trade anything away yet, cause those leftover cards will be your sideboard. 

Prerelease Prize Support

All of our prerelease events are run with an eye towards having the best possible time, learning, and trying out new ideas and strategies that come from every new set. So with that in mind, we stick to a simple pack-per-win prize structure that looks a little like this:

  • 4 Wins - 4 Packs
  • 3 Wins - 3 Packs
  • 2 Wins - 2 Packs
  • 1 Win - 1 Pack

    With the exception of the Friday at 3 PM event, each event will have a maximum of 4 rounds. All prizes will be awarded to players in the form of Brothers' War Set boosters once they've finished with the event. Only play 2 rounds and need to drop? No problem! Just let us know you're leaving and we'll give you whatever prizes are owed at that point.

    Because the 3 PM Friday event will be constrained to 3 rounds in order to make sure that the 7:30 PM event can start on time, it will have a similar prize structure to the one listed above, but adjusted slightly. In order to accommodate the missing round, the final round of the event will count for 2 boosters (so you can still win as many as four packs if you 3-0 the Friday event).

    Brothers' War Prerelease FAQ

    Here's a few commonly asked questions about prerelease events and in-store play events. If your question isn't on this list, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at the store! We're happy to answer any questions you might have.

    Q: How well do I have to know Magic to play at a prerelease?

    A: Not that well really! We ask that you have a working knowledge of the game (i.e., you know how to play, and no one's going to need to explain turn order or any of the basics), but beyond that we'll do our best to accommodate any and all skill levels. Prerelease events are a fun and casual environment, and if you're having a tough time with something we'll have a judge or tournament organizer available to help you through it.

    Q: What should I bring with me to the event?

    A: Here's a short checklist of items that are either required or good to have:

    • Required: A well fitted mask to wear while in the shop
    • A water bottle and energy bar or dry-snack (you'll need to step outside to eat it, but it's a good idea to have something if you're hungry and a round goes long).
    • Sleeves and a deck box (you also can buy these at the shop if you forget them)

    Q: Should I preregister for the event?

    A:  If you're able to, yes absolutely! Preregistration locks in your spot at the event. The last thing you need or want is to show up on the day of and find out we sold out the night before (which is a thing that has happened in the past).

    Q: If I preregister and can't make the event, what happens?

    A: That depends on you! In the event you aren't able to make it to the event, you can either contact us to request a refund, or stop by as you're able to and pick up the prerelease kit we would have handed you if you had gone to the event. If we don't hear from you, we'll assume you want the prerelease kit and hold it til the next time we see you.

    Q: I've never built a deck for limited before. Any pointers?

    A: We've got a few! Here's a short list of handy tips when building a limited / sealed deck:

    • Stick to 40 cards! That's roughly 23 spells and creatures + 17 land. Those numbers will shift a little bit depending on what you open, but broadly that's where you should aim to be.
    • Play the colors that let you play your best cards. 
    • Don't be afraid to experiment! You can switch your deck around between rounds and between games. Every card you're not actively using in your deck is part of your sideboard, so if one color combo just isn't working for you, maybe wait until the match is over and try swapping it around.
    • It's okay to ask for help from other players. This is a prerelease; we're here to have fun and enjoy the new set. You'll often find that we've got several players at each prerelease that enjoy helping and mentoring newer players through the deck building process.

    Q: Any other advice on getting ready for a prerelease?

    A: Yup! If you can, try to familiarize yourself with the set ahead of time. Keep an eye out for spoilers! By the time you're reading this, spoiler season will already have started and you can bet that there's a few really cool looking cards and mechanics out there that need reading up on. 

    Q: What if I need to swap from one event to the other, can I do that?

    A: Sure! As long as there's still a spot at the event you want to swap to, yes definitely. Just email us (or contact us through the contact page of our website) and we'll get right on it. 

    Q: Which brother is best brother?

    A: These records are lost to history. You'll have to play the set to find out! (If you're trying to decide between which brother for the prerelease you should know it's purely an aesthetic choice!)